Part 1

"Ok-" Grunted Dino with a more than clear hint of sarcasm in his voice and a very irritated tone "- I'll need you to explain to us, common mortals, what you meant when you said we've already walked the right path!"

"Um, yeah-" Interjected Dominik with a less scornful gaze than Dino but still quite upset "- The illusion, I can understand that much, but saying that we've already walked the right path after exploring the whole day and discovering nothing, well... those seem like the words of a madman"

"Can I at least finish my meal before listening to your insults, please?" I plainly replied.

"Raph,-" Sighed Lucas with the tone of a scolding older brother "- you're getting everyone upset, can't you just explain?"

"*sigh* Fine then. Please listen-" I began "- First of all: illusions. Illusions are products of magic whose goal is to deceive you, generally. This deceit may come in the form of an image, a sound, your own thoughts, or even your senses. The latter is the temple's case. I'm unsure how it was cast, when, or even how to break it. In all honesty, I'm not sure if there's even a way to break it. But that's beside the point"

"So we can't escape it?" Interrupted Dominik, his face a mask of focus.

"Correct and wrong-" I smirked "- If the whole point of the temple was to kill or trap us, then we would have perished already. Instead, the illusion is set up so that it may lead us out of the halls of the temple. This, my blind friends, gives us the option to, ehm, deceive the illusion"

"And how in the gods' name could we do that?" Asked, or rather, demanded to know Dino.

I took my time to explain in detail how illusions worked and what are the signs of being under one. Unfortunately, the discussion took long and it delved into matters fit for a mage but not so much for one trained solely in the sword. By the time I had finished explaining Lucas had long fallen asleep while Dominik's eyes were shutting themselves of their own accord. Dino was the only one who seemed to really focus on my words. His previous scornful demeanor now completely gone.

"Dominik,-" Dino said in a soft voice "- you can fall asleep. I will brief you in the morning"

"But, my lord, I..." His voice trailed off as Dino gently patted him on the shoulder. Dominik's eyes closed soon after, leading him into a well-deserved slumber.

"So-" Said Dino turning his attention on me again "- What you're saying is that we need to shield ourselves when under the illusion and hope to find something different than one of the other passages? You couldn't come up with anything more, ehm, I don't know, elaborate?"

"Did you expect me to waltz between corridors with fire in one hand and ice in the other, destroying walls and creating a passage for us all? Maybe even wave a hand and dispel the illusion? Be realistic. I'm strong for a mage, yes, but a mage of my age that is. And even if I was far stronger than this, I can bet you my whole fortune and more that there's some other mechanism in place to protect this temple... It makes me wonder. The city we've been in was completely ruined and overrun by undead creatures yet this temple is in fairly good shape and its magic still strong. If whatever destroyed that city could do nothing to this temple, how could I?"

"...I'm sure you're right...sorry-" Replied Dino after a long pause. His head had slumped within his knees and, with the remnants of a skewer, he was drawing a portrait on the bare soil "-It's just... I never liked mages, no offense to you, of course, but I have my reasons to dislike your kind... being dependant on one is... tasking"

"I understand that, but I'll need your trust tomorrow, else the whole plan will fail. I hope you understand that...-" A long moment of silence fell on the camp with the only audible sounds being the cracking of the fire and the sound of running water "- Beautiful drawing. Who is she?"

"Dara Meitorken... my fiance-" Dino said with a nostalgic sigh escaping his clutched lips "- We have been promised since we were kids. Funny enough, we hated each other's guts at first. It was mostly on her part, though. She said she wanted a prince to be her husband, not a noble of a small domain. That didn't age well-" A light chuckled interrupted his story as he recalled those moments "- What about you, oh-so-clever mage, do you have anyone you fancy in your life? A girl waiting for you outside of this hole? One you wish to express your feeling to?"

"Truth be told-" I said while letting a relaxed chuckle escape my lips "- I'm quite similar to you. I have a fiance, her name's Sora. Much like you, we were promised while still kids, I was four at that time. We never had much chance to interact since she is from a different kingdom but we spent four years at the academy together"

"I'm envious, Raphael. Being able to spend so much time with the woman you are promised to must be eye-opening, if not exciting. I was lucky to fall in love with Dara after she moved into my family's mansion, and even luckier she felt the same. Yet I can't help but feel envy imagining spending four years with her away from my family...must have been in love, eh?"

"...Love, eh... Well, I wouldn't be so sure about that" I said before prompting him to get some sleep.

Most likely due to the conversation with Dino, that night I slept rather poorly. That one girl constantly breaking my efforts to fall asleep. Sora. Her face kept appearing in my head, her voice, our dates, the countless times she scolded me, and I kept reliving them all. Lucas' words while sailing on the raft did nothing but worsen my hopeless condition.

[What do I even see her as?... Could I, maybe... No. No that can't be right! I'm just tired, that's all. A good night's sleep ought to do me good]

Part 2

The next morning came, greeting me with a terrible headache and my brother's face closer to mine than any man would ever like. His habit of rolling around had gotten worse since entering the labyrinth. Reluctantly, I forced myself to stand, reminding me of the routine I picked up in the days under Kyvern's tutelage. The cold water from a nearby stream was a blessing for my sluggish mind and so, taking full advantage of it, I dipped my whole body in it. After regaining the basic mental acuity of a human, a merger breakfast awaited me. Leftover fish and mushroom soup were it's main components, while some crunchy bread and dried meat were an appreciated boon.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

As soon as everyone finished their preparations, our group walked back toward the base of the temple. We took our time on the way so I took the chance to revise the details of the plan, answering their questions and coming up with answers to my own. It took us an entire hour to circle around the entire temple, checking if the markings we left changed in any way by confronting them with the maps we drew. Once we were finally satisfied with the results, we entered one of the five entrances with the exact same marking, meaning each entrance corresponded to an exit.

The walls of stone were the exact same as the day before. Nothing seemed to change. Yet, I felt restless as if a sixth sense was trying to warn me of the dangers ahead. Though I thought it wise to heed it's warnings, I pushed the need to exit the hallway as far away from my mind as possible, knowing that overcoming the trial of illusions was our one chance of escaping the cave.

"The mana knows" I muttered to myself, realizing I was talking out loud.

Luckily enough, none of my companions heard me. Their mood was already perilous enough without me adding wood to the fire of their worries. Hence, so very slowly, we walked with steady steps through the twisting hallway of stone bricks, in silence. As I had instructed. Each of them focused to their utmost best, careful of every sign of being under an illusion. But it was too soon for them to appear, we had just barely stepped through the arched gate.

It wasn't until we were a few minutes in that the first tendrils of mana- what little I could feel within the chaotic storm the temple was- began clutching their long fingers towards our consciences. I stopped the line of which I was in front and raised four fingers, a signal we had agreed on. As a mage, a kind who bathed in mana almost daily, my resistance to the machinations of mana was stronger than those who simply ignored mana's presence. Proof were the contorted faces, masks of concentration and struggle, of my three companions. The illusions showed their efficiency much sooner than I expected.

"All of you, calm down!-" I shouted as I turned around and tapped their shoulders quite violently "- Deep breaths. Slow and deep breaths. Gain control of your bodies as I told you and remember to think a single thought. Do not let your mind wander. I repeat, do not let your mind wander-" I turned around, prompting them to follow me closely while grabbing the shirt of the one in front of them "- It seems the illusions acted sooner than I expected...this temple really wants us out, uh?"

What came after was akin to madness. The more we delved deeper, the harder it became to maintain my detachment from the illusions. Even more so for the others. Soon, right became left, front became back and more than once I found myself facing the wrong way. In those moments I was so glad for the hours I spent reading myths and legends in my past life. The myth of the minotaur helped me on this occasion. Much like Theseus, I used the thread gathered from some clothes to track our way through the hallways. Not because they were tortuous like a maze's, but rather in hopes to track my way.

The situation became incredibly worse as we reached the fifteen minutes mark, the longest time so far. I was struggling to keep my mind focused, sorting through the visions of rooms full of gold, doors appearing out of nowhere and tendrils of black roots appearing through the cracks of the walls. [It's all an illusion. It's all an illusion] I kept repeating myself as I progressively pushed more and more mana out of my body as a shield. Unfortunate were those who couldn't.

I couldn't even fathom what my companions were seeing and sensing, but I was sure of one thing: they were experiencing hell. Lucas was biting on his index finger, so deep that the bare flesh was exposed to the gusts of air rushing through the hallways at intervals. Dino was pale, his eyes bloodshot and instilled with fear. He was trembling and was trying to escape every chance he got. In the end, I was forced to tie his hands and pull him forth like a prisoner. Dominik seemed the sanest between the three yet his eyes told me otherwise. I could clearly feel the madness brewing in them as if it was my own. He kept his head low and moved slowly, lethargically, as he repeated the same mantra.

"Arianna is not here...You are not Arianna...Arianna is not here...You are not Arianna"

I feared to even wonder what that poor man was seeing. Though what feared me most was what I was sure was in store for me. The moment I would let my guard down and my shields crumble, would be the moment the full brunt of the illusions would hit me. No more magic doors or rooms of gold. I already knew what I would be seeing and I knew I wasn't ready to face it. My past. My long list of mistakes. I shivered at the thought and raised my guard even more solidly, reminding myself that if I were to fall, beating the temple would become nothing more than a dream. Though more selfishly, I didn't want to feel the pain I was sure would come with the visions.

Minutes passed one after the other as if they were hours. Cold sweat was drowning my entire body as I struggled to carry the passed-out Dino on my shoulders. Lucas, who maintained some semblances of sanity by causing himself pain, knocked him out with the hilt of his sword after Dino tried to stab Dominik, most likely after confusing him for someone else in his delirious visions. I, too, began feeling the true weight of the illusions when all-too-familiar voices started calling me.

My legs gave in and I was forced to use the wall for support. That was when, ever since stepping into the temple, a smirk finally appeared on my lips. I could feel it on my fingertips. Though muddy, a path was etched into the chaotic storm of mana populating the temple and its surroundings. A clear path, like a dim moon ray leading the way for a drunken man through the slumps at night. Pure bliss amidst the madness. There wasn't a moment I was more glad to Kyvern for teaching me the existence of natural mana. Without much thought behind it, I began sprinting.

"I found it!-" I shouted out of my lungs as I dragged my two remaining companions "- It's here, somewhere! I know it!"

My breath was ragged just as much as theirs. The thread completely forgotten and all barriers of mana now dimming, but it didn't matter. I was sure I found what we were looking for, the secret the temple was holding. Because if I wasn't...then despair would have taken over me and I would have drowned in visions of the past.

I followed and followed the trail of mana, feeling it as best as I could by pushing the full weight of my body against the wall. Scatches began appearing in my hands and arms while blood covered my left eye from a cut opened on my forehead. But I didn't care. I ran and ran until the pressure of the vision heightened for just one single moment, like a wall of solid steel. I felt my heart slow down a great number of beats as she appeared in front of me, transparent as a ghost and forming her body from nothingness with particles of sand.

I screamed with all my lungs, summoning every ounce of strength- both mental and physical- in order to push through that barrier, more fruit of my imagination than real. I felt my skin tighten and rip off my muscles as my bones dried and withered while my nerves burned with an inexistent fire... Then, everything faded away as abruptly as it appeared. The visions, the voices, the pain, all of it disappeared without trace if not for the tears adorning my eyes.

I pulled the two other members of our group who were struggling with all their excessive might to flee from the imaginary barrier. A mage couldn't possibly face off against the physical strength of those dedicated to the sword, hence I was forced to call mana in my aid to boost my physical capabilities. It was a tug-of-war that- to my luck- exhausted rapidly my opponents' strengths reserves and made them stagger into the "safe zone" after one of my pulls.

"Look *huff*-" I said in between ragged breaths and gasps for air "- We *huff* wade it, didn't we?"

In front of us stood a door. Three meters in height of majestic gold with runes and marks etched into it, like carvings of an ancient race. Runes similar to the ones on the portal-like structure on the second floor glowed brilliantly with red light on the boundaries of this massive door.

I was too tired to even think. Too spent up to gaze at the gate any further. So, I closed my eyes, blissfully seeping into a charming sleep, knowing we had succeeded.